监狱 (jiān yù) — prison in Mandarin
🔊 Tap to hear it
#1352 most common word · HSK 6 · CEFR C1
Pinyin colour key: tone 1 (high flat), tone 2 (rising), tone 3 (dipping), tone 4 (falling), neutral.
Tone breakdown
监狱 is pronounced jiān yù. Tap any syllable’s row to hear the whole word.
In a sentence
Zuìfàn bèi pànchǔ zài jiānyù lǐ fúxíng shí nián.
The criminal was sentenced to serve ten years in prison.
Hear it, then say it right
Reading pinyin only gets you halfway. ToneDeck plays native audio for 监狱 and thousands more words, then scores your pronunciation so your tones land. HSK 1 is free, no install.
Start freeFrequently asked questions
What does 监狱 mean?+
监狱 (jiān yù) means "prison" in Mandarin Chinese.
How do you pronounce 监狱?+
监狱 is pronounced jiān yù. It uses the tone 1 (high flat), then the tone 4 (falling). Tap the character on this page to hear native audio.
How common is 监狱 in Mandarin?+
监狱 is the #1352 most frequent word in spoken Mandarin, so it is one of the first words worth learning.
Where 监狱 fits
Every HSK 6 word with tone-coloured pinyin and audio.
Words at a similar frequency
Master the tones first
What each tone sounds like and why it matters.
Why some tones change in connected speech.
Now on iPhone · Android coming soon
ToneDeck is on the App Store. The trainer works right now.
Download ToneDeck for iPhone today, and your progress syncs across every device. Prefer the browser? The full tone trainer runs at tonedeck.app right now, no install, free to start.
Browse more on the Mandarin vocabulary hub, or read how to learn Mandarin tones.